In the hay and forage industry, an agricultural machine such as a self-propelled windrower may be used to cut hay and forage crop for feeding livestock. During operation, the crop is cut and then may be conditioned where it is crimped (i.e., the plant stem may be broken open to release moisture). It is desirable to reduce an amount of time it takes for hay or other crop to dry down, i.e., to dry or reduce moisture from the plant or crop. A faster dry down time can result in less time between cutting and baling the crop, which can further minimize risk to the crop while sitting in the field.
One example of reducing dry down time is to spread the crop as wide as possible to maximize the exposure of the crop to the sun, wind, and surrounding environment. In doing so, moisture from the crop can evaporate quicker. A limitation to this approach, however, occurs when a mowing assembly (e.g., rotary platform, a mower conditioner, a disc mower, etc.) is used to cut the crop. This is particularly true if the windrow or swath of cut crop is too wide such that a tractor wheel runs over a portion of the crop. If the crop is run over by the wheel, the crop can be packed down and thus its dry down time can be much longer.